On the Wings of Night
by The Blue Winged Angel
Summary: "Dreams are fragile. But nightmares? They hold power." A mute with an incredible power; an amnesiac with a terrifying past; a brother with a huge secret; a medicine cat who's quickly losing hope; a kit with a mysterious voice in her head; a rogue with an army at her command. Six young cats fight to unlock the mysteries around them before it's too late.
1. Chapter 1: Rabbitfoot

**A/N: Hello everyone! I'm Angel, and this is the first story I'm posting here on ! I'm so excited ^_^ Um, just so you know, I plan on having this story be really long and... kinda confusing. Any and all feedback is appreciated! Bye now!**

**Disclaimer: I'm not one of the Erins, and Warriors does not belong to me. If you haven't figured that out by now... :P**

Chapter One

Rabbitfoot

She awoke by a stream, in a forest.

That didn't seem right. There should be no stream, less trees. Unless she was by the border. The border of what? She didn't know. Absentmindedly she turned and licked her light brown fur. She strained to remember her name for a moment- then it came to her. She was called Rabbitfoot.

Something else occurred to her. Weren't cats born as itty-bitty kits, by their mother's sides? Not full-grown in the middle of a forest. Rabbitfoot didn't know _why_ she didn't have any memories, but she'd definetely been around for a while. She wasn't a newborn kit. She glanced up at the sky. "Daytime," she murmured. Her voice was quiet and rough, as though she hadn't spoken for a very long time. "StarClan couldn't do this in the daytime. Right?" Who Starclan was, she didn't know. It seemed like another part of her was speaking. The part that remembered everything. She wished that part would start tellling her everything, because she. Was. Freaking. Confused.

Did she have a family? A mate, kits? Were they worried? Rabbitfoot remembered, vaguely, a tom with brown fur like hers, and with mottled gray patches. And he had warm brown eyes, too, she remembered that for sure. Was he her brother? She felt very strongly that she had a brother. And yet she didn't even remember his name. It disturbed her.

Despite feeling as though she should know a lot more, Rabbitfoot felt strangely calm, at peace. There weren't any other cats, or even any prey around. The forest was warm and sunny, and the stream was quiet. It was a nice place.

She tried to remember more. Where did she come from? Evidently, in a place where there were less trees, and a cat called Starclan lived. Rabbitfoot shook herself. She was probably going to stay here a while and she'd better find some shelter and food.

Rabbitfoot headed off, following the stream. At some point, the colors dulled slightly and the sunlight diminished just a bit. But Rabbitfoot barely noticed, she was so consumed in her quest for food and shelter. She sniffed the air and kept her ears pricked. She opened her eyes wide, waiting for a hint of scent, a flash of movement, a tiny squeal of a sound.

Something moved in a bush up ahead and she heard a faint heartbeat, thumping not too far away. She froze, not certain for a second that she knew how to hunt. Then the scent hit her- rabbit. Instinct and training took over. Rabbitfoot dashed for the bush, and the rabbit ran, Rabbitfoot tearing after it. At some point they left the forest and began racing across hard-packed earth, near a Twolegplace. Rabbitfoot was soon tiring, but she could tell the rabbit was, too.

_Just don't veer off,_ she silently prayed to the rabbit. It seemed to obey. Rabbitfoot took the chance. She put on a burst of speed and leapt on it. Then she cleanly broke its neck and picked it up to bring it back to-

Where? Where was she bringing it back to? She strained for the memory, but it dangled just out of reach. Rabbitfoot shook her head and laid down next to the rabbit. She leaned down to take a bite out of it... and before she knew it, the rabbit was gone. Rabbitfoot had wanted to save a bit, carry it with her and find a den and eat it the next morning, but clearly that was not going to happen. She stood up. She could see a gorge a little ways off. But that looked really dangerous. Rabbitfoot decided to instead return to the forest, maybe sleep under a tree. Not in a tree- she didn't want to climb a tree. She didn't know why, but it seemed really scary to her. Maybe she'd had a bad experience in a tree? Or perhaps she just didn't climb trees. Rabbitfoot shook herself again. She buried the bones of the rabbit, and walked back to the forest.

Rabbitfoot decided to distract herself with stories. Stories of what? She didn't know. She tried to remember.

She _tried_ to remember, all right. She'd remember bits and pieces of a story, and then the rest would disappear. She would say aloud to the open air, "The greatest warriors of all Windclan were Shatterice and Jackdaw, who invented tunneling," or something similar, but the rest of the story would disappear as soon as she opened it.

Rabbitfoot laid down heavily on the ground with a _thump_. She flicked her tail, frustrated. Where had her memories gone? _Why can't I remember anything?!_

She laid her head down, fully prepared to go to sleep despite it only being about sunhigh. Just as her eyes closed she heard a voice call out to her.

"_Hello!_" it said. "_Who are you?_"


	2. Chapter 2: Silentsong

Chapter Two

Silentsong

Silentsong crept through the forest, taking care not to make a sound. Although her Clan, SkyClan, tended to do most of its hunting in trees and not on the ground, Silentsong sort of enjoyed the feeling of the thick, green grass under her paws, and anyways, it was easier to leap on the ground. She'd never been as good at climbing as the rest of her Clan, and she avoided tree-hunting and -fighting when she could. She was always afraid a vision or an omen or whatever they were called, would hit her while she was far above the ground. She went limp during her visions, and if she was in a tree, going limp could mean her doom.

As she reflected on this, Silentsong scented a rabbit in a bush not far ahead. She smiled a little and crept towards it. Tensing, she prepared to pounce on it- when suddenly it burst out of the bush at full speed, followed closely by a light brown she-cat who looked about Silentsong's age.

Silentsong jumped back. _Who was that?!_ Silentsong didn't recognize her. Maybe she was a ViperClan cat... on SkyClan territory. She peered after the she-cat, who had already disappeared through the trees in her pursuit of the rabbit. Silentsong crept after her.

The she-cat didn't look hostile. She caught the rabbit, she ate it, she wandered through the forest apparently telling the beginnings of stories to herself. ViperClan cats didn't have stories... neither did rogues, as far as Silentsong knew. But Silentsong knew every cat in SkyClan, and she'd never seen this she-cat before.

Overwhelmed with curiousity, she decided to say hello. And if the she-cat was aggressive, then Silentsong could run back to camp, where at least there would be an army of well-trained warriors to help her fight.

Keeping low and close to the ground, she called out, "_Hello! Who are you?_"

The she-cat looked around, apparently startled. She said, "Who are _you_?"

Silentsong crept out of the bush, standing up straight. "_My name is Silentsong,_" she said, and the she-cat jumped again, turning to look at her.

"I'm Rabbitfoot," the she-cat said cautiously.

_And you're _extremely _open-minded,_ Silentsong thought to herself. She wondered what had happened to Rabbitfoot to make her so open-minded.

"You have a weird name," Rabbitfoot noted.

"_It's a warrior name. By the sound of it, you have a warrior name too,_" Silentsong said.

Rabbitfoot looked startled.

"_What?_"

"Your... your mouth doesn't move when you talk. Who's talking?"

Silentsong winced. She hung her head. "_I... I am. The silver tabby standing before you. I am... mute._"

"But how are you talking?" said Rabbitfoot. She didn't sound too confused, just like she was wondering.

Silentsong wondered how much she would have to explain to Rabbitfoot. For the moment, she really didn't feel like going into her visions, her curse, and all the history that came with it.

"_I can speak with my mind. But only to those who are truly open-minded- so open-minded they'll believe anything. You're the only cat I've ever met who can hear me,_" Silentsong said.

"You sound bitter," Rabbitfoot said.

Yes, Silentsong realized, a little of her bitterness had crept into her 'voice'. But suddenly the relief of being able to communicate with another living creature, without elaborate gestures, washed over her. She sank into a sitting position, a small smile on her face.

"_You'll want to join our Clan before ViperClan gets you,_" Silentsong said.

Rabbitfoot flicked her tail. "A Clan... yes, that sounds right. Is it a big Clan? Big enough that you won't know all the cats in it?" She sounded very hopeful.

Silentsong shook her head. "_No, I'm sorry, but it's sort of small. You can't have come from a Clan- there's only SkyClan and StarClan._"

Rabbitfoot jumped again at the name 'StarClan,' but stayed silent for a moment. Finally she said, "But you mentioned ViperClan earlier."

"_ViperClan... they're just a group of rogues. Once their leader, Viper, was a Clan cat, but he wanted to improve upon the warrior code. He left SkyClan and created ViperClan, which has almost no rules except for who can kill who,_" Silentsong explained.

"Oh," Rabbitfoot said.

There was much rustling of leaves behind Rabbitfoot, and quiet discussion reached Silentsong's ears.

"_And that would be either ViperClan, or a SkyClan patrol. Either way, it's time to bring you back to camp. Come on!_" Silentsong said, turning and leading the way back to the gorge.

Ah, the gorge. It was red and brown and ginger with a spot of blue where the pool and waterfall glistened, and patches of gray where the rocks were. Silentsong began to nimbly hop down the path. Rabbitfoot followed reluctantly, and as Silentsong turned her head to see the strange she-cat, she realized that Rabbitfoot wasn't really used to climbing up and down things.

"_It'll be easier if you step where I step,_" Silentsong said.

Rabbitfoot nodded, and soon she was loosely padding down into camp.

Silentsong tried to ignore all the cats staring at her, probably wondering, _Did Silentsong just lead some strange cat into camp? That mouse-brain had better not be bringing a ViperClan cat to us!_ Just the thought of it spoiled her good mood instantly. Trying not to scowl, she padded right towards the leader's den, poking her head in.

Cloudstar lifted her head. Although the tortishell she-cat was getting old, and was even beginning to go blind in one eye, she still had a regal, leader-y air about her.

"Silentsong?" she said with a blink, clearly confused.

Silentsong flicked her tail and glanced outside, and Rabbitfoot padded in.

"Who are you?" Cloudstar said.

Rabbitfoot hesitated. "_You can trust her. She's the Clan leader,_" Silentsong said.

Rabbitfoot said, "I'm Rabbitfoot of, ummm."

"Of ummm?" Cloudstar said, pricking her ears. Her eyes narrowed.

"I don't remember," Rabbitfoot said in an apologetic tone.

"Is she ViperClan?" This question was directed at Silentsong. Silentsong shook her head in reply, sniffed Rabbitfoot, and shook her head again more violently. "I'll trust you, then," Cloudstar said. She got to her feet, wincing. "What do you want?"

Rabbitfoot shook her head slowly. "I don't know. I don't remember anything. I don't know anything at all about who I am or what I want."

Cloudstar regarded Rabbitfoot for a second, and Silentsong found herself silently begging the leader to offer Rabbitfoot a place in the Clan.

"You are vulnerable," Cloudstar said finally. Her blue eyes softened as she watched Rabbitfoot. "Like a kit, you know nothing, or almost nothing. We will protect you, let you stay with us, and eventually you may become a warrior of SkyClan. In the meanwhile you will be as an apprentice to all of us. I will go announce this to the Clan," she finished, and she padded out of the den, Silentsong and Rabbitfoot close behind.

Silentsong followed very close to Rabbitfoot. "_You don't have any memories?_"

"Y-yeah," Rabbitfoot said.

"_That would explain why you can hear me. Are you sure-_" Silentsong began, but Cloudstar yowled out a summons and cut her off.

"Let all cats old enough to climb a tree gather below the Rockpile!" Cloudstar said. Her deputy, Blazeheart, a muscular ginger tom, leapt up to sit just below her. In comparison to the young, strong deputy, Cloudstar seemed even older and frailer.

"Silentsong has brought to us today a new she-cat, named Rabbitfoot," Cloudstar said. Confusion rippled through the Clan at Rabbitfoot's warrior name, and suddenly Silentsong realized how odd it was, too. Where had Rabbitfoot come from, anyhow? She glanced at the wiry brown she-cat next to her, and suddenly she was certain that Rabbitfoot was not from here, or anywhere around here.

"Rabbitfoot will stay with us and learn the ways of the Clan. She will be as an apprentice to all SkyClan cats. We will welcome her as a new member of SkyClan. That is all," Cloudstar said, and she began to make her way down the rocks. She stumbled, and Blazeheart jumped down to support her.

_Cloudstar will be joining StarClan soon enough,_ Silentsong thought grimly. Hopefully, when Blazeheart took charge, he would still let Rabbitfoot stay with the Clan.

Nimblepaw, a tortishell-and-white she-cat, came up to Silentsong and Rabbitfoot. "I must say, I'm a little disappointed that that wasn't my warrior ceremony. I took an assessment a few days ago and was hoping it would be my warrior assessment," the cute little apprentice said cheerfully. "But you won't understand that, I expect, what with being a rogue and whatnot."

Rabbitfoot looked for a second as though she was going to explain to Nimblepaw that she had no memories, and all that good stuff, but Silentsong said to her, "_Don't. If Cloudstar didn't announce your amnesia, then she has a reason._"

Rabbitfoot just nodded.

"Anyways, you don't have to hang out with _her_," Nimblepaw said, flicking her ears in Silentsong's direction. "She's mute, in case you haven't noticed, and she's a bit dumb. You can come be friends with me and Vineheart."

Silentsong sighed and turned away. Already, the only cat she'd ever met who could understand her was going to leave her alone, abandon her.

But then, behind her she heard Rabbitfoot speak up. "She's nice, and I like her. And she's very smart," Rabbitfoot said stiffly, frostiness clear in her voice.

Nimblepaw paused. "Well, I'm sorry about the misunderstanding, then," she said, just as chipper as before. "I'd still like to be friends with you, though, because you seem like a nice cat. And hey, maybe I'll even become friends with Silentsong. Anyway, got to go train. Goodbye!" And with that, the tiny tortishell skipped off.

Silentsong turned back to see Rabbitfoot in surprise. "_Why-_"

Rabbitfoot cut her off. "You'll reteach me the ways of the Clans, and I'll be your... I don't know. Your way to communicate. Anyway, we need each other. So I'm not going to leave you all alone... unless you want me to, anyway." Rabbitfoot touched the tip of her tail to Silentsong's silver tabby flank, and for a moment the two she-cats stood in peace.

**A/N: A horribly written ending to a bad, exposition-y chapter. Although these first few chapters are pretty old... now that I think about it, that first one was several years old. (The Shatterice & Jackdaw thing was added in later.) Well, enough with my ramblings. Review! And I'll see you... whenever I post the next chapter. Or if I post another one-shot or something.**


	3. Chapter 3: Rabbitfoot

**A/N: Hello, reader(s). You know... I would really appreciate reviews. This is the third chapter I've posted and there aren't any reviews, even guest reviews. I'm mainly just posting these because I wrote them and I like them, not for fame or whatever, but it's discouraging that my writing is so bad that apparently no one will review it.**

**Soo... There's been a timeskip of like a week in the story. No one really mentions this so I thought I'd tell yall.**

Chapter Three

Rabbitfoot

"Yes, that's right, up you go! No, don't, that's unstable- yes that one! Now don't come down, I want you to balance on the branch with only two paws. Two paws! Now-"

Rabbitfoot shakily balanced on the thin, smooth branch on three paws. She'd lifted one forepaw, and now she felt as though she were about to fall. Glancing back down at the ground, her vision went wobbly, and she put the paw down again to stabilize herself.

"I don't think I'm learning anything here except how to be unsafe in trees," Rabbitfoot hissed as loud as she could.

On the ground, Firestorm laughed. "Well, I'm not teaching you to be a mouse-heart! Now lift up two paws, rogue. You just have to balance." The fiery ginger she-cat's green eyes glinted in amusement, but Rabbitfoot just felt sort of sick.

"I've never been so far up a tree in my life," Rabbitfoot said.

"Then go farther up," Firestorm scoffed.

Silentsong, who was on the ground watching and teaching as well, glanced up at Rabbitfoot with her silver eyes.

"_Don't go higher- the tree gets very unstable from here on out. Just lift the paws. You'll be fine._" Silentsong assured her. But Rabbitfoot was still reluctant to lift her paws over _six fox-lengths_ from the ground.

Slowly, she lifted one forepaw off the slim branch. That wasn't too bad, so she began to shift her weight onto her hind legs. The branch began to dip under her, but she sat up straight like a Twoleg and lifted her other paw.

"Brilliant!" Firestorm cheered. "You can come down now. I must say, you've got guts, rogue."

Rabbitfoot half climbed, half slid down the tree. "That was... terrifying."

Firestorm scoffed. "Ha! That was only a few foxlengths. You see that pine?" She pointed with her tail at a pine tree that loomed above the trees fairly far away, jutting into the sky like black lightning. "I've climbed all the way to the top!"

"So you can climb, what about running? I can beat you both in a race any day," Rabbitfoot said.

"_I tied you in a race yesterday,_" Silentsong said. Rabbitfoot bit the inside of her mouth to keep herself from replying- she couldn't talk to Silentsong in front of other cats or she'd look crazy. Silentsong smirked at her, satisfied.

The three she-cats padded back to the gorge together, hunting along the way. When they got back to camp, Silentsong and Firestorm dropped their catches on the fresh-kill pile. Rabbitfoot was about to when Silentsong poked her with her tail. "_You should take that to the nursery. It'll give you a chance to meet Robinstep and Chasefoot, anyway,_" Silentsong said.

Rabbitfoot glanced around to make sure no other cat was near, and replied, "Yes, I'd like to meet the queens. Okay."

Silentsong smirked. "_Yes. The 'queens.'_" Rabbitfoot blinked at the sarcasm. Were Robinstep and Chasefoot not queens..? She shook away the confusion and headed up the path to the nursery-cave.

When she walked into the smallish, dark, but cozy cave, she saw two cats. One was a tortishell she-cat with many more ginger spots than usual. The tortishell was looking up at and purring to the other cat. That cat had its back turned to Rabbitfoot, but she could still see its dark brown-ginger fur.

"Robinstep and Chasefoot?" Rabbitfoot said cautiously, putting down the fresh-kill.

The tortishell glanced at Rabbitfoot. "Yes, that's us. I'm Robinstep. Bring that over here, please?" Robinstep seemed nice and pleasant enough, but Rabbitfoot was wondering what sort of parents would name their she-kit 'Chasekit' when Chasefoot turned around.

"You're a tom," Rabbitfoot muttered.

"W-w-well, uh, I-I'm not, not u-u-usually i-i-i-i-in here," Chasefoot stammered, blinking rapidly. He hung his head.

Robinstep purred and stretched her neck to lick his cheek, but apparently, it didn't cheer him up much.

"I-I-I love y-you Robinstep, see y-y-you," he muttered, and he brushed past Rabbitfoot to leave.

"Does he always do that?" Rabbitfoot said, setting down the fresh-kill near Robinstep.

"Not always... when he's alone with me or his brother, Hazelfur, he's okay. He just gets nervous around other cats," Robinstep said. She leaned down to take a bite.

Rabbitfoot nodded. "So when are the kits coming?"

"Within the next moon or so, Wingflight says," the tortishell queen replied. Rabbitfoot nodded again.

"It was good to meet you, and Chasefoot," Rabbitfoot said.

"And you," Robinstep purred in reply as Rabbitfoot left.

It was getting to be around sunhigh, so Rabbitfoot trotted down the path to take a piece of fresh-kill for herself. She grabbed a finch and lifted her head, wondering where to sit. Over there, Chasefoot, Hazelfur, Nimblepaw, and a gray she-cat and Vineheart, a brown tom, all sat together, eating. Rabbitfoot sort of wanted to go over and apologize to Chasefoot for gawking at him, but what with all the cats gathered around him, she figured he was pretty nervous and having another cat there wouldn't help him. Near the Rockpile, Cloudstar and Blazeheart sat together, and over there the light gray tail of Wingflight, the medicine cat, disappeared into the elder's den. Near the pool, a group of four cats, including Firestorm, splashed around and ate near, or in, the water. And over there, in the shade, was where Rabbitfoot wanted to sit: by Silentsong.

She padded over to where her friend sat. Noting that Silentsong had no food, she said, "Want to share?"

Silentsong nodded. "_Before you met me, did you see any other cats?_"

"No. Why?" Rabbitfoot said. "And starving yourself. Eat."

Silentsong obeyed, taking a bite out of the finch. "_I... um... I'll explain later. I guess I was just... wondering._"

Rabbitfoot took a sidelong glance at Silentsong. Silentsong was her best friend here, but she knew that the silver tabby was keeping something from her. Something big. Something that had to do with her mind-speaking. Then again, Rabbitfoot hadn't exactly told Silentsong about her only memory and what it might mean- purring and nudging the brown-and-mottled-gray tom she was now sure was her brother, surrounded by many other cats, staring up at four cats who were perched high in a tree. She felt certain that that memory was important somehow.

They finished the finch and began to set off up the path together, intending upon joining Sharpeye, an elder, in sunbathing on the Skyrock. They had both finished hunted for the day and there was nothing more to do.

When Rabbitfoot landed on the Skyrock she almost missed, slipped a little, and winced. She'd jolted her bones somehow, and felt sort of odd and shaky all over.

"_Are you all right?_" Silentsong asked.

Almost at the same time, Sharpeye, a dark brown tabby tom, spoke up. "Hurt yourself, rogue? Hope you're okay," he said.

"Yeah, I think I'm fine," Rabbitfoot said, and her answer was directed at both Silentsong and Sharpeye. But what she was really focusing on was that, one, her paw sort of hurt. And yet the pain seemed almost like... a phantom. Not quite real, not quite hers. And the other thing she was focusing on...

A memory had suddenly jolted into her mind. She slipped down a hill into a stream, and sat there, quite comfortable with the wet but unhappy with the mud. She sat there mumbling swear words that she made up on the spot, as a small, giggling dark gray, long-furred she-cat trotted down the hill to help her.

Then Rabbitfoot sat up straight and blinked. She was still on the Skyrock- that had just been a memory.

But it wasn't her memory.

**A/N: Oh look, a cliffhanger! I hope I wrote it well. Well, next chapter, we're going to have the third point of view character be introduced. He's probably my second favorite of the viewpoint characters, lol.**

**Anyways, remember to review and you will receive a fresh-baked virtual pie! ;) See you next time I post a chapter!**


	4. Chapter 4: Stormpath

**A/N: Okay, while admittedly I only got one review, well, I got one review! *throws a party* Yay! I was going to post this chapter tomorrow, but, well, I got a review! In case I hadn't stated that like 200 times already!**

**Guest: Erm... I have like the first nine or so chapter already written, lol. Don't kill me. Anyways, here, spudkin, have a fresh-baked virtual pie for being the first reviewer! And have the next chapter as well! **

Chapter Four

Stormpath

"Why am I doing this again?"

Stormpath followed close behind Featherpaw as she wandered through the territory, picking up whatever herbs she found.

"Seriously," he said. "It's greenleaf, the Clans are at peace, mostly, and there haven't been any foxes or badgers on the territory for moons. You'd be perfectly safe herb-gathering on your own."

The dark gray apprentice looked up at him with a smile. "WindClan, ShadowClan, foxes, and badgers may not be problems right now, but Karibelle and her rogues are. And they're dangerous- remember, Blight reported that they've killed three kittypets?"

"Kittypets are mouse-brains. You're not," Stormpath pointed out.

"Not all kittypets are mouse-brains. Come on, Stormpath. Be serious for a second. Karibelle and her rogues are a real danger. And if you let a seven-moon-old she-cat with no warrior training out of camp on her own, then I think she'd be doomed," Featherpaw replied. She turned back to the chervil she was gathering. "Besides, it's much less boring when you're here." She stood up and kept walking.

"Why's that?" Stormpath said.

Featherpaw replied, "Because you're always doing stuff like-"

Suddenly, his bones were jolted, all at once, for no reason. Shocked, he slipped down the hill, through the mud and into the stream. Hissing swear words he made up on the spot, he examined himself. The aftereffects of the weird jolt was still there, and he'd hurt his paw somehow.

Featherpaw failed at hiding her amusement as she came down the hill towards him. "Stuff like that. Are you okay?"

"I think so. My paw hurts, though," Stormpath said. He tried to stand, and although it hurt, it was bearable.

Featherpaw sniffed his paw. "It's not broken or anything, by the looks of it. What happened?"

"I was..." Stormpath trailed off. Something had flashed into his mind- a silver tabby she-cat, with unsettling silver eyes, and a dark brown tabby tom with amber eyes, were looking at him, concerned. At the same time, they said, "Rabbitfoot?"

Stormpath's eyes widened involuntarily. Then he was suddenly back in the stream, sitting next to Featherpaw.

"Featherpaw to Stormpath? Come in, Stormpath," Featherpaw said. She was trying to joke, but he could tell that she was really worried.

"Yeah, I just... nothing," he said. He had to find someplace where he could be alone... think about what it meant. Could Rabbitfoot be alive..? He dug his claws into the ground. She couldn't be. She _couldn't_ be.

"What happened?" Featherpaw said.

"Nothing. I was just remembering something," Stormpath said. He felt bad for lying, but this wasn't the sort of thing you told other cats, including the medicine cat apprentice.

Featherpaw looked like she wanted to question him further about what had happened, but she didn't. Instead she just said, "Are you sure you're okay?"

Stormpath nodded, with a flash of guilt and fear. _You wouldn't be so worried if you knew about what happened.._. "Come on, let's go," he said, leading the way out of the stream.

He chewed on his lower lip. Rabbitfoot... he wasn't sure where that image had come from, but if it was real, then that meant she wasn't dead. She was off somewhere else.

Stormpath suddenly realized what that meant. She was somewhere else, another Clan maybe, and she'd made friends. She had power. And if he knew Rabbitfoot, then she was killing some poor cat this very instant, in a scheme to become the leader of her new group.

Worse still, Rabbitfoot would want to destroy the Clans. And she'd probably also think it would be a nice touch to kill Stormpath. She'd lead her new allies into battle against the Clans. Karibelle and her rogues were hard enough to deal with, but Rabbitfoot knew the warrior code, knew the cats and customs and weaknesses of the Clans. She would be a formidable enemy.

Stormpath realized he was growling. No wonder. Rabbitfoot was the reason his mother, Quailflight, was dead. She'd been the reason he'd changed his name and moved from WindClan to RiverClan. She was the reason he would never see Quailflight again and he rarely saw his father, Creamfur. Rabbitfoot had been so helpful as a kit, but she had twisted into a sick, horrifying villian.

And she was his sister.

Stormpath was feeling extremely depressed as he walked into camp. He padded over to the fresh-kill pile sat down, and started dejectedly chewing on a fish.

Ripplestrike, a light brown she-cat who was eating as well, glanced at him. "Feeling down, Stormpath?" she asked.

"Yeah, kinda," he replied, focusing on the fish.

Ripplestrike glanced around and moved a little closer to him. "Listen, Stormpath. I know that even though you didn't see her anymore, you're probably really sad about your sister disappearing. I'm sorry. If you ever need anyone to talk to, I'm here for you, and so's the rest of the Clan."

Stormpath felt like he was going to be sick. He wanted to say, _Stop trusting me. Stop thinking I'm so nice and good or whatever. Because I'm really, really not. _Instead he just said "Thanks."

"What are Clanmates for?" Ripplestrike purred. "Don't worry, everything will work out all right." She moved away and kept eating her fish.

Later that day, Rainstar, RiverClan's leader, scrambled up a willow tree and sat on the lowest branch. "Let all cats old enough to swim join under the Overhang for a Clan meeting!" she cried. Her deputy, Echostorm, a white tom, came to sit on the roots of the tree along with Mossfoot, the Clan's brown-furred medicine cat, and Featherpaw. Stormpath trotted over to sit under the willow and found himself next to Wetstep. With a wince, he moved away- the ginger tabby was terribly boastful.

"Today I have several matters to discuss with you all," the young leader announced, her green eyes shining with worry. "The first is that of Karibelle. She has established herself as a boss in the Twolegplace, and Blight and Tess both report that she has gained many cats who formerly lived alone in the Twolegplace." Stormpath pricked his ears. He knew that Blight was one of the rogues that RiverClan had recruited as a spy, but he hadn't met Tess before. Oh well. "We must begin to patrol along the Twolegplace border, believe it or not," Rainstar continued. "Echostorm and I fear that she will invade. Judging by her actions before, she will try to drive us out of our territory, and then continue to expand by attacking ShadowClan or WindClan. This is not acceptable. We will not only begin patrolling the Twolegplace border, but we will increase battle training and we will tell the other Clans about Karibelle. They need to know about this new threat."

Mostly, the cats of RiverClan nodded, although a few looked nervous at the idea of telling the other Clans. Rainstar cleared her throat.

"Speaking of which, the Gathering is tonight. It is currently too risky to take many warriors because of Karibelle, so only eight cats will come. Me, Echostorm, Mossfoot, and Featherpaw, of course, as well as Frostmelt, Poolpaw, Lakecry, and Stormpath," Rainstar said. "That is all." She jumped down and disappeared into her den, Mossfoot and Featherpaw following her. Stormpath should have been excited about going to the Gathering, but he wasn't. _If you knew who I was, what had happened,_ he thought. Then he shook his head. Stormpath had trained himself not to think about or mention what had happened. Although his vision of Rabbitfoot had shaken him, he wasn't going to let it scare him enough to make him think about what had happened all the time.

"Right! Ripplestrike, Pikeheart, Frostmelt, please go patrol the Twolegplace border and set some marks," Echostorm said. Pikeheart, a brown tabby, looked like he was about to speak up and Echostorm said, "Yes, you may bring your apprentices. Silverpelt, Lakecry, you're on guard duty. Go relieve Mistyfoot and tell him he's to hunt with Stormpath and Wetstep."

Stormpath soon headed out of camp, following Mistyfoot and Wetstep, but he was distracted- his mind was still on Rabbitfoot.

It was dark out, but the glow of the stars and the full moon made it easy to navigate through the reeds and ferns towards the Island. Still, Stormpath followed close behind Poolpaw to keep from losing his way. Even though it had been three moons since he had joined RiverClan, he still hadn't memorized the territory, and since they hadn't taken him to a Gathering he had never been on this path before.

"Be careful," Poolpaw said, turning to look at Stormpath. The dark gray tabby tom's words seemed to float through the air, breaking the tranquil silence of the night. "We're coming towards the swamp and it's rather dangerous."

"I'll keep that in mind," Stormpath said.

Poolpaw nodded, apparently satisfied, and turned again to look straight ahead.

The small group of RiverClan cats soon found themselves at the edge of a small swamp. On the other side was the fallen tree that had once served as the bridge to the Island. On the other side of the tree, Stormpath knew, were stepping-stones that the Clans had placed in the water once the fallen tree began to rot. And beyond that, the landscape became hilly- WindClan territory, the territory Stormpath had been born in. Even though he knew he belonged in RiverClan, some part of him would always belong to that hilly part of the Clan territories.

Rainstar led the way through the swamp, her gray fur gleaming silver in the moonlight. As they reached the edge, she continued into the water and towards the Island. Stormpath and the rest of them followed. The water was chilly, but not too cold, and it was nice after a day of intense greenleaf heat. Soon they emerged out onto the Island, and headed towards the clearing in the middle, where Stormpath could already hear the merry noises of cats gathered together.

When they reached the clearing Stormpath pushed through the crowd, looking and scenting for his father. He caught a flash of creamy fur and WindClan scent and followed it. But when he caught up, he realized that it was a WindClan elder.

"Hi, Morningdawn," Stormpath said, dipping his head.

"Good evening, Stormpath. Why, I remember sooo long ago when you were known as Speedpath. Isn't that amazing? And here I thought my memory was going," the elderly she-cat chuckled.

Stormpath was about to remind her that he'd only left WindClan and changed his name three moons ago, but decided it would be prudent not to correct her. "Have you seen my father?" he asked.

"Creamfur's right over that way. Nice to see you, dear!" Morningdawn said, pointing with her tail. Stormpath went in that direction.

"Thanks," he said over his shoulder. Within a few minutes he found Creamfur. "Hello, Father," he said.

"Speed- sorry, Stormpath, hello," Creamfur replied. "How's the prey running?"

"Pretty good. You?" Stormpath said.

"I am well, except for Rabbitfoot's disappearance." The creamy tom glanced down, sorrow evident in his gaze and voice. "She was suddenly just... gone."

Stormpath struggled to keep the truth from pouring out. He knew he couldn't- it just wasn't an option.

"It's just rather hard on me, losing your mother, then you leaving, then Rabbitfoot just going so suddenly," Creamfur said in an apologetic tone.

"It's okay. It's hard on me too," Stormpath said. _Hard on me that I know what happened to Quailflight, and no other cat does. Hard on me that I alone know that Rabbitfoot is so evil._

Creamfur flicked an ear and licked his son on the forehead. "Don't worry, we still have each other." He glanced up. "Oh- I think the leaders are going to speak." Indeed, they were. Sparkstar of ThunderClan, a very small tortishell tom, yowled, "And let the Gathering begin. Darkstar will speak first."

Darkstar said, "Thank you. The prey is running well in ShadowClan. Our apprentices are learning much with the onset of greenleaf. Fireclaw, formerly Firepaw, has earned his warrior name."

The cats yowled out a greeting to Fireclaw, chanting his new name. The black tom sat up straight a few fox-lengths away from Stormpath.

"His sisters will likely soon become warriors as well. That is all. Breezestar?"

Breezestar was a light gray she-cat, and her sandy yellow eyes glinted as she sat up a little straighter. "WindClan's prey runs well as well. We are still searching for Rabbitfoot but she has not turned up- we now presume her dead, along with the several other cats that have gone missing."

The Clans went silent for a moment in mourning. Stormpath dug his claws into the ground, exasperated. He knew exactly what had happened to the missing cats that weren't Rabbitfoot- Ashenpaw, Greeneyes, and Kitewing had been killed by Rabbitfoot. He noticed a dark gray tom staring at him, and remembered that Rabbitfoot was his sister. Stormpath hung his head in a fake show of misery.

"That is all that we have to say. Sparkstar, would you like to speak now?"

"Yes, thank you. In ThunderClan..."

Stormpath stared at the dark gray tom who had stared at him before. The tom was totally focused on the leaders now. Stormpath felt like he should know him... then it hit him. This was Dockleaf, ShadowClan's current medicine cat. He'd become a full medicine cat somehow three moons ago. There was some suspicion about how he'd become medicine cat or something, but Stormpath didn't really remember that. He'd been rather occupied that moon, what with Quailflight's death and his move to RiverClan and all. Suddenly, Dockleaf turned his yellow gaze on Stormpath. Stormpath quickly glanced back up at the leaders.

Sparkstar had just finished. "Rainstar?" the tiny tortishell tom said.

"Thank you, Sparkstar. Cats of all the Clans, RiverClan has some important news to share with you tonight. For several moons, RiverClan has been dealing with a rogue queen who calls herself Karibelle. She and her rogues tried to take our territory, claiming the lake to be rightfully theirs, and they fought viciously, not caring if they died. They have moved to the Twolegplace, but Karibelle has become a boss there and now has even more cats. We suspect that she may attempt to take over RiverClan territory, and eventually the entire lake. Although for now we have the situation under control, should Karibelle attack us in the near future we will not be prepared and will require the help of the other Clans." Rainstar's green eyes glinted in the moonlight.

"And why should we trust you?" Breezestar spat. The tall she-cat was infamous for being highly independent and trusting no cat. "Could you not be leading us into a trap, or lying for your own gain?"

"I'm not. You know RiverClan would not beg for help unless it was forced to," Rainstar replied calmly.

"Forced to in order to set an efficient trap!"

"Why would I wish to disturb the current peace of the Clans?"

"In order to gain territory and weaken future enemies."

"Stop!" a voice shouted out from the crowd.

"We can't fight, we will weaken ourselves!" Featherpaw yowled, a few fox-lengths away from Stormpath.

Stormpath found himself leaping to his feet. "We must stand together and fight Karibelle, not each other!" he yelled.

The leaders were silent.

Suddenly Stormpath realized he'd made a mistake. He sat down again, looking at the ground. _Never draw attention to yourself, stupid, or they might talk to you... and then they might figure out what happened. _Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Featherpaw and Dockleaf do the same thing.

Finally Breezestar said softly, "You three who spoke up, you are Stormpath, Featherpaw, and Dockleaf, are you not?"

They glanced at each other.

"We are," Featherpaw said cautiously.

Breezestar lifted her head. "The three of them are correct. We should not fight each other. I still do not trust you, Rainstar, but I will not fight you outright."

Rainstar dipped her head. "That is all. The announcements are over." She leapt down from the tree, followed by the other leaders.

Unfortunately, Breezestar's accusation had left things rather chilly between the Clans. "Breezestar won't be happy about this, and she'll want to leave soon. I'll see you. Love you, Stormpath," Creamfur said, licking Stormpath's ear. Then he hurried off. Stormpath set off for the edge of the Island, figuring Rainstar didn't want to stay long either. Then he heard pawsteps behind him. It was Dockleaf.

"What?" Stormpath said.

"You didn't seem sad when they said your sister was assumed dead," Dockleaf replied. "No other cat noticed, but I did. And you stood with the medicine cats- few cats are bold or stupid enough to do that. Clan leaders can't punish medicine cats, because they're guided by StarClan, but they can punish warriors."

Stormpath flicked his tail. "Karibelle is a real threat, and Breezestar needs to know that. Why does it matter to you?"

"It doesn't. It just intrigued me. You're an odd cat, with more than a few secrets. I can tell. Then again, what cat doesn't have a few secrets?" Dockleaf sighed. "Anyway, I was just... thinking, wondering why you would do that. What your reasoning is." At the look on Stormpath's face, Dockleaf quickly added, "Don't worry! I won't ask you to tell. I just.. wondered." With that, the ShadowClan medicine cat disappeared into the crowd.

Stormpath heaved a sigh and kept heading towards the edge of the Island.

**A/N: Well, it looks like Stormpath has a secret. Is this significant? Indeed it is. There was actually a lot of foreshadowing in this chapter, so I hope you kept your eyes peeled while reading it.**

**Also, Dockleaf is a pretty significant character as well. Actually, he gets a POV in the next chapter, so I hope you liked him. I know I like him, lol. In the next chapter, we'll start to get an idea as to why Darkstar didn't speak up at the Gathering. So keep reading, my reader(s)! And remember to leave a review. ;)**


	5. Chapter 5: Dockleaf

**A/N: Hello! And here is good old chapter 5. Dockleaf is my favorite character to write for. Although his tone is hard to get right it's always worth it in the end. Anyways, the chapter will start... right after I reply to this review!**

**Maya: Thanks, I'm glad you like it! :D I've read the first couple chapters of Amnesia but I wasn't sure if I was actually going to read the whole thing. I'm glad to know that it's good! As for Rabbitfoot's backstory... it's much more complicated than Stormpath lets on... *muahahahaha* (I kind of ship them too. They probably won't get more than a ship tease or two though.)**

**ALSO, before I forget! Thanks to Ghost129 for following and favoriting this story! Here, have a steaming hot virtual pie, Ghost129! Also, sorry if I got your username wrong. :P**

**That A/N got way too long. Let the chapter begin!**

Chapter Five

Dockleaf

The morning was beautiful and warm, buttery yellow light filtering in through the leaves, which seemed almost to glow in the morning light. All the cats in camp were talking quietly, and the only noises were the low murmur of Clan life, and the birds calling to one another through the trees. The sky, Dockleaf knew, was cloudless and bright blue, and it would have been a lovely day to sunbathe, or play around with friends, or have a friendly competition. But the morning was spoiled, at least for him and the four sick cats in the medicine den.

At first, it had just been Olivestreak, who'd picked up a cough someplace. Then it got worse and worse. Her skin had gone pale, her fur limp and oily and dull, and she had night terrors. She'd gotten a high fever, and she was beginning to hallucinate now. Dockleaf had at first thought that the new disease was dangerous, but treatable and containable. He'd thought it was whitecough, so he'd given Olivestreak catmint and chickweed. When that hadn't worked, he'd tried tansy. When the fever started, he'd given her feverfew and lavender. Nothing had worked.

Then Lionvoice had started coughing, too. Dockleaf remembered being confused, because although Olivestreak was very young, and had encountered few diseases, so she wasn't good at fighting them off, Lionvoice was strong and had lived through an epidemic, and was good at fighting off diseases. But Lionvoice was coughing all the same. Logic didn't stop that. Dockleaf had set to work giving Lionvoice all the herbs he'd given to Olivestreak, but the herbs affected the ginger tom just as much as they had Olivestreak.

Faithpaw and Hopepaw, Lionvoice's two daughters, had spent all their time in in the medicine den with Lionvoice, so it wasn't surprising when little Hopepaw got the disease too. It struck her harder and faster then it had her father or Olivestreak. When Hopepaw got sick Dockleaf had ordered Faithpaw not to visit her father and sister, and thank StarClan, Faithpaw hadn't gotten sick yet. No, the fourth cat to contract the disease was Roxie. The cream-colored former kittypet was an elder, and the disease had struck her almost as hard as it had Hopepaw.

At this point, Dockleaf had tried everything he could think of. He'd resorted to giving the sick cats regular doses of poppy seeds, and keeping them isolated so no other cats would catch the disease.

Dockleaf thought about this as he sorted some herbs. No cats seemed to be sick other than the cats who'd gotten this illness, so he'd let the herb supply run dangerously low. Now it was time to start gathering herbs again, especially before leaf-fall arrived and most of the herbs withered away.

Behind him, a hoarse whisper said, "Run."

Dockleaf turned. Behind him, Olivestreak stood. Her once-bright green eyes seemed almost to stare through him.

"What's wrong, Olivestreak? I'm sorry I didn't realize you were awake," Dockleaf said.

"The storms. The storms are coming. They will tear the Clans to the ground. Run!" she said.

"I'm very sorry about that. Do you want something to eat?" Dockleaf said. He'd slowly gotten used to her hallucinations and nightmares. There was nothing he could do about them, although he wished there was.

Olivestreak blinked slowly. For the first time she seemed to realize where she was. "D-Dockleaf?" she murmured.

"Yes, it's me," Dockleaf said gently. "Do you want something to eat? Or some poppy seeds to go back to sleep?"

"No!" Olivestreak cried, scrambling backwards and back into her nest. "No sleep. If I sleep I'll have more nightmares."

Dockleaf wanted to point out that her nightmares couldn't hurt her, but he just dipped his head. "I'll go get you something to eat. Are you still not wanting to eat birds?" A few days ago, the brown she-cat had woken up screaming. She wouldn't tell Dockleaf what the nightmare had been about, only that she never wanted to eat birds again.

Olivestreak nodded quickly. "No birds," she whispered. She laid down in the darkest part of her nest, and watched him go out into the camp. It pained Dockleaf to see one of ShadowClan's strongest warriors reduced to this, but there was little he could do.

He trotted out into the bright sunlight, blinking. He was about to head for the fresh-kill pile when Darkstar's mew stopped him.

"Dockleaf. I have some things to discuss with you," Darkstar called. The fluffy black tom looked odd in the bright sunlight, like he didn't fit. His dark brown eyes were narrowed against the sun.

"I'll come in a minute," Dockleaf replied. "I have to feed Olivestreak-"

"Now," Darkstar said.

Dockleaf sighed, but he padded over to his leader anyway. "Yes?"

Darkstar looked up at him. There was desperation in the leader's dark eyes. The disease had worried him, Dockleaf, and the deputy, Vixeneyes, ever since it had proved uncureable. They'd all lost much sleep over it. "I was only wondering... have you spoken to StarClan recently? Have they told you about this disease?"

Dockleaf shook his head. "I'm afraid StarClan have been silent." He sat down beside Darkstar and for a moment, they watched Faithpaw and her mentor, Stoneheart, playing around. Faithpaw, a sleek, creamy apprentice, looked very small compared to her mentor.

"Perhaps the time has come to give up our pride. You should ask the other medicine cats for help," Darkstar said.

"Mossfoot might know," Dockleaf said slowly. "He is the oldest of the medicine cats. And besides, I'll need chervil when Duskdawn kits, and he's always willing to trade chervil for juniper berries."

Darkstar nodded. "While you're out, keep an eye out for Vixeneyes. She took a three-cat patrol up to the wilderness border, but she hasn't been back. I'm sure she'll turn up eventually, but...When she left she was coughing."

Dockleaf shuddered at the thought of what might happen if the ShadowClan deputy were to contract the disease. He nodded. "I'll be off now, then."

"Would you like a warrior to escort you?"

"No, RiverClan has always been very friendly to me. And besides, even if they aren't this time, I have a little warrior training. Remember?"

One side of Darkstar's mouth quirked up in a smile. "I remember you never completing training, Dock_paw._"

"And if I had you wouldn't have a medicine cat right now," Dockleaf shot back. "I'll see you by sunhigh. Goodbye."

"May StarClan light your path, Dockleaf."

"You too."

Dockleaf soon reached the edge of the pine forest and, more importantly, the Thunderpath. The lake was glittering blue and clear, and Twolegs were enjoying the day on its shores. Taking care to stay away from the halfbridge and the tiny Twolegplace, where the Twolegs were laughing, talking, and swimming, he moved farther up the border. Luckily, very few monsters came this way even in greenleaf, so it would be easy to cross. Still, Dockleaf sat still for a moment and listened for monsters, just in case.

"What are you doing here?"

Dockleaf looked up. It was the brown-and-mottled-gray tom from before- Speedpath, or Stormpath, or whatever he went by now. Dockleaf flicked his tail.

"I'm invading RiverClan with my giant army. I've come to see Mossfoot, you mousebrain," he said.

"Great StarClan, _sorry. _No need for hostility, I just wanted to know," Something-path said. His brown eyes glittered. "Either way, seeing as how I found you here loitering suspiciously, I probably ought to escort you to camp. Don't scratch my face off on the way." Something-path turned and headed deeper into RiverClan territory, and Dockleaf followed.

"By the way, I forgot what you go by now. Can you remind me?" Dockleaf said.

"My name is Stormpath," Stormpath muttered, staring straight ahead.

Dockleaf flicked his tail. "Why'd you change it from Speedpath to Stormpath?"

Stormpath stayed silent.

"Was it because you came to RiverClan?" Normally, Dockleaf would have shut up by now, but it seemed to irk Stormpath and that was amusing.

"Yeah, sure," Stormpath said.

"Why'd you do that, anyway?" Dockleaf said.

"Don't step there, you'll die," Stormpath advised. His voice was falsely calm, but his face betrayed his annoyance, frustration... he even looked sort of angry. But Dockleaf was on a roll now.

"Why did you move from WindClan to RiverClan? Every cat in the Clans is wondering it. You're going to have to tell some day," Dockleaf said.

"Just shut up," Stormpath hissed.

"Oh come on, it's not like you killed a cat and you're running away from your crimes, or something. Why in the world would a cat move from their birth Clan, to their birth Clan's bitterest enemy?" Dockleaf said. He was suddenly annoyed at Stormpath. "There has to be a reason!"

"Fine!" Stormpath hissed. "You really want to know? I'll tell you! It was to get away from Rabbitfoot! _She_ is the reason Quailflight is dead! And don't go around telling that to any cat, because then they'll come after me and ask _questions _and-!" Stormpath stopped and turned away sharply, and Dockleaf heard him sob.

Dockleaf fell silent.

**A/N: I'm sure Dockleaf just voiced a bunch of concerns all of you readers are wondering about. You may have also noticed certain things about Stormpath's answers. ;) Of course... for the sake of dramatic effect, I can't fully explain anything till later. (If you're absolutely going to die if you don't know, hit me with a PM (sorry to guest users) and I'll explain it to you, if reluctantly.)**

**Question of the Day (answer it in a review): Sooo, which POV character is your favorite so far?**

**And that's it. I'm signing off for now. See you next time I post something. And remember to review! ;)**


	6. Chapter 6: Stormpath

**A/N: Hello all! Here's chapter six. But first...**

**HalfSun: Thank you! :D I like Rabbitfoot too. She's probably the most like me of the POV characters. **

**Thanks to HalfSun for favoriting and following this story, and thanks to Emily0130 (I think that's your username) for following it!**

Chapter Six

Stormpath

A thousand scenarios where he didn't tell Dockleaf why Quailflight was dead ran through Stormpath's head as he made his way towards the RiverClan camp. He should have lied, or just not said anything. The dark gray medicine cat had lapsed into silence, for now, but Stormpath knew that eventaully Dockleaf would get over his silence... and then every cat would know.

It seemed almost foolish that he didn't want any cat to know, but he had reasons. _If the Clans knew what happened that day... _Stormpath thought. He swallowed down the guilt. Besides, now that he knew, or at least was pretty sure, that Rabbitfoot was alive, he knew it would be very, very dangerous to tell any other cat that Quailflight's daughter was why she was dead.

Soon they were at the camp and Dockleaf padded straight through camp, past Featherpaw, who was sorting herbs, into the medicine den.

Stormpath trotted up to Featherpaw. "What was that about?" the little long-furred she-cat asked him.

"I dunno. He just showed up at the border saying he wanted to see Mossfoot," Stormpath replied.

"Huh," Featherpaw said. "I wonder..." She stared off into space for a moment. "No, I'm sure he's just here about chervil and such. Duskdawn will probably kit soon, and he'll be needing some."

"Chervil?" Stormpath said. He blinked. He only knew a little about herbs, but... "Isn't that for bellyache?"

"It helps with kitting too," Featherpaw told him. Then she purred. "And if you think about it, kitting is just a dangerous, supersized bellyache!"

Both Stormpath and Featherpaw broke into laughter.

Behind Stormpath, a voice said, "I really do hate to interrupt laughter, but I need a word with Stormpath." Stormpath turned to see Rainstar. By the amusement in her eyes, she'd heard the joke about kitting.

Featherpaw dipped her head. "Sure you can borrow him, Rainstar. See you, Stormpath. And hey, when you're done, bring me something to eat, please?"

"Sure," Stormpath promised his friend. He followed Rainstar away.

The dark-flecked gray she-cat led the way out of camp and into the forest. "You can walk beside me, Stormpath," she said with a purr, seeing his reluctance. "I'm not out here to eat you, I promise."

Stormpath sped up a little to walk beside her.

"Stormpath, ShadowClan's medicine cat just barged into my camp demanding to see Mossfoot... and honestly, I'm suspicious," Rainstar began. "I know that medicine cats are supposed to be neutral, working towards the greater good, blah blah blah, but Dockleaf is a former rogue and I wouldn't put it past Darkstar not to teach him that part of the medicine cat code. Beyond that, ShadowClan has been acting suspicious lately. They're at our border far too often, and at the Gathering, when normally both Breezestar and Darkstar would have spoken against my idea for an alliance against Karibelle, Darkstar didn't even speak, and only Breezestar protested. ShadowClan have been acting preoccupied and I don't think that can be good... in fact, I think Darkstar may be planning an invasion into RiverClan territory and that is simply unacceptable."

"So I shouldn't have let Dockleaf come see Mossfoot?" Stormpath said.

"No, to break the warrior code like that would be very bad," Rainstar said quickly. "All I ask is you escort him to his camp again. He should not be given any room to spend any extra time in our territory. ShadowClan may be scouting for good places to battle."

Stormpath dipped his head. "Of course, Rainstar."

The leader looked immensely relieved. "Thank you, Stormpath. You may go back to camp now- I'm going to spend some time out here."

Stormpath hurried back to camp. By the time he arrived there, Dockleaf was being waved out of the medicine den by Mossfoot.

"I'm sorry I couldn't help you with your mystery disease," Mossfoot rasped, "but take some chervil! No, I don't need any juniper berries, just take the chervil. I know it'll help you and you need help right now. Featherpaw, be a dear and give Dockleaf five or six leaves of chervil. Goodbye now!" Mossfoot gave a raspy chuckle and padded back into the medicine den.

Featherpaw glanced up at Dockleaf. "Mystery disease?" she said as she handed him the chervil. Dockleaf stayed silent.

Stormpath padded up to them. "Dockleaf, I'm to take you back to your camp," he said, trying to sound sort of tough. He failed miserably.

"Right," Dockleaf mumbled around the chervil. Stormpath waved his tail in goodbye to Featherpaw and as an indication to Dockleaf to follow him.

They made their way to the border in silence, mainly since Dockleaf was struggling to hold the chervil and couldn't talk. They crossed the Thunderpath without any trouble and were fairly far into the forest when a white tom with black paws- Blackflight- came racing up to them.

"Dockleaf! And Speedpath- sorry, Stormpath," Blackflight panted. There was a wild panic in his eyes.

Dockleaf spat out the chervil. "What? What's happening? If Olivestreak is freaking out again, just give her chamomile or thyme."

"No, it's Duskdawn!" Blackflight said.

Dockleaf froze and Stormpath could smell his sharp fear-scent.

"She's kitting!" Blackflight said.

"_Foxdung!_" Dockleaf spat. He raced into the forest, and Blackflight sped after him, leaving Stormpath to try to keep up.

Stormpath raced between the pines, panting, trying his hardest to keep up. Soon he found himself near the dip in the ground that was ShadowClan's camp, and, ignoring the sentries, raced in just in time to see Dockleaf hurry into a den. He followed him in, where a pretty dark gray she-cat- Duskdawn, he assumed- was yowling her head off. In the other nest, a dark red she-cat with green eyes laid beside a kit that looked a lot like her, but with dapples. The kit said, "She's been yelling for a long time now. Where've you been, Docky?"

"Rosekit, shhh," the red queen said.

Dockleaf didn't react at all. He was too busy muttering to himself.

"Too early... shouldn't have used all my poppy seeds!" He glanced sharply at Stormpath. "Since you're here, make yourself useful. Ask Fireheart- the white elder- to help you find raspberry leaves. Bring them here and then find a nice, thick stick."

Stormpath nodded and hurried out of the den, pushing past Blackflight and his brother and Duskdawn's mate, Russetheart. "Where's the elder's den?" he said. Russetheart pointed his tail towards another den.

Stormpath went into that den. Inside, a white tom lay, his head on his paws, and his expression was so heartbreakingly lonely that Stormpath wanted to... comfort him, somehow. But there wan't any time. "You're Fireheart, right?"

The white tom lifted his head and nodded slowly. "What's wrong, young'un?" he rasped.

"Duskdawn is kitting, and Dockleaf needs raspberry leaves!"

The white tom nodded. "I can't enter the medicine den myself what with the sick cats- Dockleaf thinks elders and kits are hit harder. But you can go- look." Fireheart scratched a shape into the ground. "The leaves are soft on top but spiky round the edges. Fast, now, young'un!"

Stormpath nodded his thanks and raced to the medicine den. Inside it was cool and dim, and cats coughed. A brown she-cat, Olivestreak, huddled in the back and stared dully at him, and a tiny white she-kit was whimpering in her nest, her eyes glazed. The other two cats- a ginger tom Stormpath recognized as Lionvoice and an elderly ginger-and-cream she-cat- were asleep. Stormpath wondered briefly if these were the victims of the mystery disease, but there was no time. He grabbed the leaves like Fireheart's description, and hurried back to the nursery.

Inside, Duskdawn was still screaming, and it was easy to see that Dockleaf was panicking. "Too early, far too early," he muttered.

"I have the raspberry leaves," Stormpath said as loudly as he could through the leaves.

Dockleaf spun around. "That should help clot the blood, should the kitting last too long, but I don't have enough herbs to save her and the kits," Dockleaf said. He accepted the leaves and began to feed them to Duskdawn. His fear-scent was sharp and filled the den.

Stormpath, remembering his earlier instructions, went outside again and very quickly found a stick, which he brought back in.

"Here," he said, spitting it out near Duskdawn's muzzle. "Hold this- bite it when it hurts."

The young she-cat grabbed the stick, clamping down on it.

The den was small, hot, and stuffy, and the three cats' fear-scent mingled with the scent of blood. Time dragged on but nothing got better, and although Dockleaf frequently sent Stormpath to get herbs that would help, none of them seemed to work well enough. Soon sunhigh had come and gone, when it hit Stormpath.

"I'll be back," he said. He raced out of the den and past the two guards at the entrance of ShadowClan camp. He ran towards the edge of the forest, slowing down to scent the ground. There, slowly fading, was the scent trail of Blackflight, Dockleaf, and himself running to the camp. He followed the trail as fast as he could and soon enough found it lying there- chervil.

"_It helps with kitting too,_" Featherpaw's voice told him in his head. He snatched the herbs and ran back to ShadowClan camp at full speed. He skidded into the medicine den and spat the herbs at Dockleaf's feet.

"Chervil?" the ShadowClan medicine cat said, confused. Then it dawned on him. "Chervil!" He slowly fed the herb to Duskdawn, and the young queen's breathing began to slow and calm down. It became clear that although she was still in pain, it was easing. The raspberry leaves began to do their job, and Stormpath relaxed a little.

Dockleaf glanced at Stormpath. "Thank you," he said quickly.

Stormpath flicked his tail in embarrassment. "It was nothing, really. One of us should have thought of it sooner."

Stormpath ended up staying until after the kits were born. Dockleaf and Duskdawn were the first to see them, of course, and then Russetheart went in. Stormpath almost wanted to leave, but he felt that he wanted to see the kits that he had saved. And only a few minutes after Russetheart saw his kits, Duskdawn asked for Stormpath to come in and see them.

Inside the den, Duskdawn looked exhausted, but pleased. Russetheart sat behind her, his amber eyes gleaming with love and pride. At Duskdawn's belly, two tiny scraps of fur were wiggling.

"We want you to name the kits," Duskdawn explained quietly. "Without you there wouldn't be any, and we don't care about the names..."

"As long as you don't name them something like Uglykit," Russetheart said, and his mate purred with amusement.

Stormpath blinked. "Great StarClan... really?" The young parents nodded, and Stormpath sat there, thinking. He glanced down at the kits. "The light gray one... Quailkit," he said.

"Beautiful," Duskdawn whispered.

"Name one after you," Russetheart suggested.

"Me?" Stormpath said, frozen to the spot. _Believe me... you don't want to name your kit after me._

Russetheart nodded. Duskdawn looked up, glancing at the unnamed kit, a dark gray one like its mother. "Yes. Pathkit!" she purred suddenly. Stormpath nodded, forcing a smile. "Pathkit and Quailkit. Thank you, Stormpath. May StarClan light your path."

Stormpath dipped his head. "And yours." He stepped out of the nursery and started on his way home.

**A/N: Well, you can't say that chapter was uneventful. Not relevant? Probably. You see, originally, Rosekit was Pathkit and Quailkit's sister, and since she's actually a major character, this chapter was indeed relevant. Now, it's not, it just introduces some ShadowClanners and shows the slightly strained relationship between Storm and Dock. Oh well.**

**QotD: What would you have named the kits?**

**That's it for now! Thanks for reading! And remember to review ;)**


	7. Chapter 7: Silentsong

**A/N: Here's chapter 7! Sorry it took so long. I really did not want to finish writing this (I had skipped ahead and forgotten to finish this one). I did it anyways just for you guys.**

Chapter Seven

Silentsong

"Hurry up! There's something up here!"

Silentsong was trotting along the southern border with Rabbitfoot and Vineheart. She smiled as she heard the brown tabby tom's cry.

"What is it?" Rabbitfoot called.

"Scent markers," floated back the reply.

"_No way. We're on the border and there are border markers? Impossible," _Silentsong snorted.

Rabbitfoot stifled a laugh. "Still, we'd better go see what he means," Rabbitfoot said. The two she-cats sped up a little.

Vineheart was standing just beyond the border, sniffing the ground. He looked back at them, green eyes bright with surprise.

"It looks like ViperClan have marked their border," he explained.

_Oh,_ Silentsong thought, stunned into... well, not 'silence' but 'not mind-speaking.' If that made any sense.

She stepped over the border too and sniffed the ground. The strong, bitter scent of ViperClan was clear. They had marked their borders.

"But that doesn't mean anything, right? How could it mean anything?" said Rabbitfoot, mystified.

Vineheart didn't seem to hear, so Silentsong decided to explain. "_They never marked their borders before. This is pretty much a way of saying, 'We're coming for you.'"_

Rabbitfoot knew better than to reply in front of Vineheart, but the expression on her face made it pretty clear that this was not exactly the best news she'd heard in her life.

"Should one of us go back and, like, report it?" Rabbitfoot said carefully.

"I'm afraid that won't be necessary," said a sickly-sweet voice. All three of them looked up to see a smirking, fluffy white she-cat. Behind her were a painfully thin gray, and a long-furred calico she-cat.

"You see," the white she-cat continued, "I am Venom of ViperClan, and I'm afraid we're taking you prisoner.

They had fought hard for approximately three seconds, which was when the realized both the gray tom and the calico she-cat were both berserkers. Then the whole thing went sideways.

The gray tom, who Venom had called Insanidu, had grabbed Silentsong and was dragging her along by the scruff. Silentsong was stumbling beside him as best as she could. The calico was shoving Vineheart from behind to keep him moving and Venom was leading Rabbitfoot along.

Silentsong sent a mind-message to Rabbitfoot. "_Run."_

Rabbitfoot shot her a questioning look but stayed silent.

"_You know how rabbits run when they're cornered- crazy, running over anything. Run like that, and go get help," _Silentsong said.

Rabbitfoot didn't even glance at her this time. Silentsong's fur bristled in frustration. _Doesn't she understand that this is our only chance?!_

They kept walking for a moment when Silentsong saw Rabbitfoot tense. Then, the wiry brown she-cat dashed forward. Venom moved to stop her, but Rabbitfoot knocked her over and ran. Venom and the calico chased after Rabbitfoot, with only Insanidu to watch Vineheart and Silentsong.

Silentsong glanced at Vineheart. _Maybe..?_ There was only one way to find out.

She directed her thoughts at Vineheart. "_If you hear this, flick your tail._"

He stayed still.

"_If you hear this, flick your tail,_" she said again, more forcefully. Again he didn't move.

"_Please,_" she said, recognizing the note of desperation in her 'voice.'

She didn't realize she was staring at Vineheart until he turned and looked at her quizzically. Quietly he said, "What is it, Silentsong?"

"_Can you hear me?_" Silentsong cried.

"Why are you staring at me?" Vineheart said.

"_I'm trying to speak to you- please, StarClan, let this mean he hears me!_" It had been a long time since there was no cat she could speak to, and now her old hopelessness and bitterness was crashing over her again. Besides, they wouldn't have a chance of escaping unless Insanidu or the calico was gone first.

"Why are you staring at me?" Vineheart repeated, and with a sinking heart Silentsong realized that he couldn't hear her.

She flicked her ear at Insanidu and unsheathed the claws on one paw, trying to indicate that they could attack him together. _Please, please, please understand me!_

Vineheart shook his head. "It's dangerous," he whispered.

Silentsong rolled her eyes. _Duh!_ But it was also their only chance to get away if Rabbitfoot didn't make it back to camp somehow.

Vineheart shook his head again. Then he turned away.

Silentsong felt like he'd slammed a door in her face. Now all she could do was hang on to the extremely feeble hope that Rabbitfoot could find help. She knew her friend was fast enough but the ViperClan cats were strong and smart and at the very least knew to drive her away from the gorge. If she and Vineheart could have taken out Insanidu, they might have had a chance... but her stupid muteness had gotten in the way. Silentsong hung her head, a bitter taste in her mouth.

It was several minutes later when Venom and the calico came back, dragging Rabbitfoot along. They'd scratched Rabbitfoot up and pulled out some tufts of fur, but beyond that, Rabbitfoot was pale under her fur and looked confused and horrified- like her memories were trying to come back and scrambling her brain in the process. Silentsong ran over to her. "_Are you okay?!_" she said.

Rabbitfoot didn't respond. Silentsong glanced at Venom and the calico, then nosed Rabbitfoot to her feet. The rest of the walk to the ViperClan camp, Silentsong had to support Rabbitfoot. Silentsong didn't know if it was Rabbitfoot's memories or if she was just really scared or something, but she seemed really, really weak.

The ViperClan camp wasn't much to look at, but it was certainly efficient. Six or so dark green bramble dens for the cats, a rotting log for Viper to make announcements on, and in the back, there was an pitch-black rabbit warren some cats had modified for use as a prison, which Silentsong, Rabbitfoot, and Vineheart were forced into. None of them spoke, (well, duh, Silentsong herself didn't speak, but neither did Rabbitfoot and Vineheart) they just sat there in the darkness, waiting.

What seemed like many sun-shifts later, another cat crept into the darkness with them. Silentsong sniffed the air- it was a she-cat about ten moons old.

"Who are you?" Silentsong said.

"Ever," the she-cat said. "I've been sent to fetch you."

Silentsong pushed Vineheart out ahead of her, and then nosed Rabbitfoot to her feet, and followed Ever into the sunlight.

Rabbitfoot looked less out of it, which was good, but Silentsong herself was terrified. ViperClan were not exactly lenient to their prisoners... She gulped as a white tabby tom leapt up onto the log.

He made some mind-numblingly boring speech that Silentsong didn't actually listen to- she was more worried about, 1) whether she was going to die, and 2) if Rabbitfoot was okay.

She zoned back in just to hear Viper say, "-the prisoners!" and hear a roar of approval from the small crowd of cats that had gathered.

_Fox-dung, _Silentsong thought. "_Rabbitfoot?"_

Rabbitfoot glanced at her, but didn't say anything.

"_Do you know if we're going to die? I zoned out during the speech-thing,"_ Silentsong said. Rabbitfoot just shrugged nervously, and Silentsong felt annoyed. What was that supposed to mean?

Venom stalked through the crowd, which parted for her. She came over to Rabbitfoot, Silentsong, and Vineheart.

"I'd love to kill you, my dear," she said conversationally to Silentsong, "but I don't have that priveledge."

With that, the fluffy white she-cat grabbed Vineheart forcefully by the scruff and pulled him to Viper's log.

"Keith," Viper called, smirking psychotically.

A large golden tom stepped forward. Silentsong realized what was about to happen, and she turned her head and screwed her eyes shut. But that didn't stop her from hearing Vineheart's screams as he was shredded to pieces. Silentsong half wanted to cry, half wanted to puke. To her left, Rabbitfoot, who had not looked away, was in fact retching.

"_We should run,_" Silentsong said.

"What if they catch us?" Rabbitfoot replied quietly.

"_At least we'll have tried,_" Silentsong said. Rabbitfoot paused, then nodded.

Silentsong crouched down, tensing her muscles. The moment she saw Rabbitfoot dash off, she burst from her starting point, running at top speed away from the ViperClan camp and towards SkyClan territory. Her paws just barely skimmed the ground, and her whole body felt hot as her muscles were probably being overexerted.

Finally, the two she-cats made it to the edge of the gorge. Silentsong looked up and glanced all around. No ViperClan. She relaxed just enough to puke over the edge of the gorge.

"That's disgusting," Rabbitfoot observed, watching Silentsong retch.

"_ViperClan is disgusting,_" Silentsong managed. Exhausted, she began to stagger down into the SkyClan camp.

**A/N: ViperClan's animosity towards SkyClan is growing stronger. Plot point? I think so.**

**Keith and Ever were cameos from another story that will probably never get written. But I liked their characters, so, they magically appeared in ViperClan.**

**That's about it. I hope you liked! Remember to review if you did. Or if you don't. Or if you want to say, "I like ninjas." Whatever, just review. ;)**


	8. Chapter 8: Karibelle

**A/N: Firstly, I'm sorry I kinda disappeared off the face of the planet for a while there. Life happened. But now I've updated! So yay! :)**

**Secondly, There's been a timeskip of one moon, just so you know and so that everyone doesn't freak out in a few chapters when Pathkit and Quailkit are walking and talking and stuff.**

Chapter Eight

Karibelle

Karibelle slunk through the undergrowth, allowing her nose to guide her. She smelled her cats, a great many of them, and she smelled water, which shielded other scents. She couldn't smell any prey, but she knew it was only a matter of time before she found some. She stayed in her crouch, staying low to the ground and taking long strides.

She flicked her ears at the sound of a bird chirping. Looking around, she saw the mouse-brained bird was on the ground, chirping loudly. She stopped for a moment to check the wing- it was in her favor- before stalking towards the bird. It froze, and she silently cursed herself. Her pawsteps had been too heavy. Trying to step more lightly, she kept moving forward. But the bird soon heard her, and letting loose a distress call, it fluttered up into the sky.

Karibelle watched it go. It didn't matter. She was full for the moment, and her cats were well-fed. She had only been hunting for sport.

The gray she-cat turned and headed back towards her camp. She flicked her ear. Was that something behind her? Probably not, these were a windy woods, especially in greenleaf, and the wind often sounded weird. She kept going when-

Something heavy, but fairly small and soft, knocked into her, bowling her over. Karibelle hissed and spat, scratching her attacker in a few places. But he had her pinned down. She struggled, and managed to knock the both of them over. Within seconds both she and her attacker had gotten to their feet, a few tail-lengths away from one another, crouching and tense in case of another attack.

Karibelle was the first to relax and stand up. "It is not wise to attack your leader, Grim," she said. The smaller, darker tom stood as well, dipping his head.

"I was only testing you," Grim scoffed. His amber eyes glimmered with that odd admiration as he looked at her.

Karibelle laughed. "We both know that my fighting skills are supreme." She flicked her tail. "Do you bring news..?"

Grim shook his head. "I only wondered why you were taking so long hunting. A scout patrol- the one with Falling Stars- will return soon, however, so you may expect news then."

Almost as soon as he said it, a small light ginger she-cat came running up to them. Falling Stars had only been with Karibelle for a short time. Normally Karibelle would have gotten rid of her by now, since she was so small, but the tiny she-cat was excellent at scouting areas out quickly and without much incident.

"Karibelle," Falling Stars panted, dipping her head. "My apologies. I wanted to be here sooner-"

"We don't have time to listen to your excuses. Get on with it," Grim growled, and Karibelle shot him a look.

"Don't worry, Falling Stars. I'm sure you've done well. Do go on," Karibelle said. Falling Stars' midnight blue eyes shimmered with relief.

"Yes, ma'am. We have found that the Clans know that we are gone and are not pursuing us. The RiverClan spies Blight, Tess, and Mel are incapacitated in various ways. ShadowClan, unlike RiverClan, does not patrol the outer border, as you predicted. There is much of their more outermost territory that they rarely use, so we may take a long time in getting to their camp if necessary." Falling Stars paused. "That is all."

"Thank you," Karibelle said. She dipped her head. "You may return to camp now."

Falling Stars dipped her head as well, and hurried back to camp. Grim and Karibelle stood there watching her go. "I don't know why you bother to be kind and respectful to cats under you. There's no point," Grim growled.

Karibelle flicked her tail. "There is, actually. Leaders have to be liked, after all, or else... bloody revolution. Bad things." The two of them started back towards camp as well, taking their time.

"When are we going to attack?" Grim said suddenly.

Karibelle glanced at him. "I don't know. Likely as soon as Hare's patrol returns and confirms what Falling Stars says."

"But what are we going to do when we get to their camp?"

Karibelle laughed. "I thought you would have known by now. We walk in and show them our claws."

**A/N: And before you ask, yes, Karibelle will continue to be a POV character, and yes, she will continue to talk and narrate in that weird, old-fashioned-y tone.**

**Oh! And I took a bunch of Mary Sue tests and apparently... Karibelle is a Mary Sue? I think her name accounted for about half of her score. XD But do you guys think she's a Mary Sue or am I (and those tests) just being weird? **

**Well, review, my readers, and I'll give you lots of cookies! ;)**


End file.
